New Maples for 2012

On Wednesday I made the 90 minute drive to Buchholz Nursery in Gaston, Oregon to pick up some of my spring order. My truck, old and decrepit as she is, can still hold 400 maples when properly stacked. 300 maples were 1 gallon size and 100 were 3 gallon size. Talon Buchholz told me I was getting some new cultivars that no other nursery had yet obtained. These rare and hard to find cultivars separate Eastfork Nursery from the rest, mostly large retail nurseries who would rather have common maples that grow fast and sell quick.

My passion for JMs has lead me to appreciate all cultivars, even those that grow only a couple of inches per year. Size is not everything in JM culture. My initial fascination with these trees deepened to outright love and a passion to share JMs with others. My little nursery is open by appointment only to screen out people who aren't looking for JMs, and to provide as much time that is needed for those people who want to add a maple or two to their landscape. Education is critical to ensure that the maples are planted in the right location for sun or shade, as well as good drainage. The number one killer of JMs is poor drainage [wet feet] which leads to root rot and weakens the tree enough to make it suceptible to fungus or bacterial infections.

Japanese Maples planted correctly are low on maintanence and high on appreciation. I call it the 'Wow Factor' that makes a visitor or neighbor stare and say "where did you get that tree?" A focal point for a front yard or an accent to a man-made pond or stream, JMs are the perfect choice and there are hundreds to choose from.

Well back to my initial reason for this post - the 400 new maples I unloaded and tucked away in various corners of my 3 greenhouses which are already pretty full. In May, I will move most of my maples outside to a large area which I will cover with shade cloth. This is where they will live during the summer and fall months. My new maples from Talon will also adorn the shade area.

The 1 gallon size maples included 60 different cultivars, of which 13 were new names to me. The 3 gallon maples included 5 new cultivars. I carefully developed a spreadsheet to reflect the different cultivars, the size of container and the quantity of each. This list was emailed to my "Maple Collectors' distribution list. It is a joy to share new maples with like-minded individuals across the country. Now if only the rain would stop and Washington State would join the majority of states with warmer than normal temperatures.

More Spring Weather

Today temperatures will again reach 60 degrees, actually yesterday our high was 66 and I was in shorts. My lillies are breaking the surface and the daffodils are just about to bloom. Crocus have already bloomed and they open wide with the sun. The grass is green and growing - mowed once already this week.

Fans are on in the greenhouses to keep the air circulating. Day by day I see more leaves on the maples - truly a wonderful time of the year.

Spring is here

For me spring has returned with the Rufous hummingbirds. The male arrived on schedule March 6th and today I saw a female. We were fortunate to feed a pair of Anna's hummers all winter. Altogether we have more than a dozen hummers make their nests and have there babies here. After the babies head to the feeders it is a non-stop competition between males and females for perches on the feeders. It is amazing to me that these wonderful little creatures return to the place of their birth - flying hundreds of miles from the south to find my feeders full of sugar water.

With the planned high temperature of 60 degrees and blue skies all is well here at Eastfork Nursery. Enjoy the day!

Roundup

Today, March 4th, it did hit 59 degrees so I could spray for weeds using Roundup. I use a 4 gallon backpack sprayer. I managed to spray two tanks of Roundup before becoming pooped and needing to put my feet up. We have gravel roads and a total of 13 acres along the Eastfork of the Lewis River. I use about 5 gallons of Roundup a year to keep it all in check. By no means is my garden areas perfect, but the weeds are kept at bay. No Roundup is used anywhere near my vegetable garden - hand pulling weeds is required. That's all for today - time for a bubble bath and a glass of non-alcoholic chardonnay.

Its early March 2012 and we have had a mild winter so far. Maples are beginning to show leaves. Makes me think of spring and warmer temperatures - now in high 40s low 50s. Maybe tomorrow we will hit 59 degrees which would be awesome.

I have sprayed fungicide 4 times so far this season. Once in October again in December 2011; then in January and February 2012. May give them one more dose before the leaves fully appear.

Ghost Maples

I have been an avid Japanese Maple enthusiast since 1984 when I first moved to Washington State. I loved all of the colors and shapes, but the cost was too much for me on a reduced income from starting a new job. So I applied for a wholesale nursery license. Even with this tool I couldn't afford to buy the number of maples I wanted.

In 1985 I attended my first FarWest show in Portland, Oregon and I bought a ticket for a seminar about Japanese Maples with Talon Buchholz as the speaker. Talon used a slide projector [no powerpoint back then] to show his beautiful photos of wonderful maples.

During his presentation a fire alarm went off [no fire, just a false alarm] and everyone had to exit the building to the outside. Right outside the exit door was a bench. I sat down and Talon sat down next to me and we chatted for more than 20 minutes while it was determined the building was not on fire. So with this unusual event I decided to start my own nursery.

As I am a one woman operation [my husband builds the greenhouses, but does not help with the maples] I began small with one 20'x50' quonset style greenhouse. About 10 years ago we added a second greenhouse this one a 30'x75' gable syle structure. It was around this time that I added my first Ghost maples to my collection. I do not do my own grafting, although I have been sucessful. It makes more sense, both time and energy-wise, to buy grafted liners from Talon. Talon's nursery is about 90 miles from my home and I plan my visits eagerly to see all of the new cultivars and wander around the grounds admiring everything. I particularly enjoy my trip when Talon is available for conversation or a quick tour to see the original Fairy Hair maple, now 20 years old.

But this blog is about Ghost maples. These are some of my favorite cultivars because of the variegation in the leaves and the changing colors throughout the season. First Ghost is exquisite and nearly translucent. Sister Ghost has very soft lacely looking leaves and Grandma Ghost changes from one month of light green leaves to those that develop purple centers. Amber Ghost is beautiful with the darker lavendar and purple leaf color, plus the dark purple bark. Purple Ghost is a ruffled purple leaf that deepens to dark purple in late spring. All of the Ghosts have reticulated leaves. This term is used to describe the visibility of the veins of the leaves - like a skeleton.

Spring is nearly here and I anxious to see what new and wonderful colors appear. If you love Japanese Maples, please visit us at www.eastforknursery.com